Men’s Swimming Makes Comeback from Hiatus but Falls Short Against TCNJ

EWING, N.J.- The Franklin & Marshall men’s swimming squad (5-3, 3-2 CC) returned from winter recess against The College of New Jersey, suffering a defeat of 202-56 in dual meet activity on Friday afternoon. The team secured one victory in an event through Sam Kamdin and achieved eight top-three placements. 

The ensemble composed of John Devaney, Brady Saunders, Ben Lockey, and Henry Tavens claimed second place in the 400 freestyle with a finish time of 3:00.20. This marks the squad’s best performance in the event this season, improving from a time of 3:04.04 recorded at the Franklin & Marshall Invitational in November, and their time is within a second of the program record of 2:59.36 established by Devaney, Brendan Cline, Chris Schivone, and Tom Graminski in 2022.

The meet’s 50-meter races utilized the skins race structure. Commencing with eight competitors, the fastest four times advanced to a semifinal, which was followed by a final race featuring the top two finishers from the semifinal.

Sam Kamdin had an outstanding individual performance for F&M, winning the 100 backstroke with a time of 53.61, earning silver in the 100 butterfly, and securing third in the 50 backstroke after achieving the second-best time in the heats. 

Having matched the best time in the heats of the 50 freestyle, Lockey went on to finish third in the semifinal, falling short of the final by 0.26 seconds with a time of 22.63. He also secured third place in the 100 breaststroke. 

Patrick Rooney finished second in each round of the 50 breaststroke, including earning silver in the final with a time of 27.99. He also took third in the 

Devaney earned silver in the 100 freestyle.

The Diplomats will compete again in two weeks, heading to Johns Hopkins on Saturday, January 25, at 12:00 p.m.

Franklin & Marshall Top-Three Finishes

John Devaney

Sam Kamdin

• 100 Backstroke (53.61, 1st)

• 50 Backstroke (25.38, 3rd)

• 100 Butterfly (54.28, 2nd)

Ben Lockey

Patrick Rooney

• 50 Breaststroke (28.01, 2nd)

• 100 Breaststroke (1:00.46, 3rd)

400 Freestyle Relay

2. John Devaney, Brady Saunders, Ben Lockey, Henry Tavens (3:00.20)